Furniture support

ABSTRACT

A pedestal support for furniture comprising first and second support members affixed to opposite sides of a third support member, intermediate the ends thereof, forming a cross member. A post having longitudinal slots in one end is placed over the cross member with the cross member received in the slots, and is then welded to the cross member, the weld filling the void between the cross member and the post.

United States Patent 1 1 Hughes et al.

[ FURNITURE SUPPORT [76] Inventors: Fred C. Hughes, 119 Mary Rd.;

James C. Hughes, 905 Nance Ave., both of High Point, NC. 27260 [22]Filed: Sept. 27, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 292,684

[52] US. Cl 248/188.7, 29/472.1, 29/482 [51] Int. Cl F16m 11/20, B23k31/02 [58] Field of Search 248/188.7, 188.1, 158; 108/150, 88; 312/254;29/471.1, 472.1, 482

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,062,494 ll/l962 French248/l88.7 3,186,669 6/1965 Buhrmaster.... 248/158 3,286,965 ll/l966McMahan 248/l88.7 f 3,391,887 7/1968 Doerner 248/l88.7

[11] 3,829,049 Aug. 13, 1974 3,751,792 8/1973 Frakes ..29/47l.l

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 9/1969 Canada 248/188.7

Primary Examiner-Marion Parsons, Jr. Attorney, Agent, or FirmBrowne,Beveridge, DeGrandi & Kline 57 ABSTRACT 13 Claims, 4 Drawing FiguresFURNITURE SUPPORT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates tosupports for furniture and more particularly to a novel pedestal supportfor tables, chairs, racks, etc., as well as a novel method offabricating the same.

Supports for furniture such as chairs, tables and the like are generallyknown in the prior art and are useful in numerous applications inindustry, business and the home. For instance, supports have beenconstructed of a tubular post upon which a plurality of legs areradially placed and heavily welded after being properly cut and beveled.The weld is then sanded. and polished to achieve a desired exteriorappearance. Other like supports have been constructed in a similarmanner; how ever, rather than sanding and polishing the resultantweld,.a second tubular member is telescopingly placed over the tubularpost to cover the weld. The second tubular member has no structuralvalue, but merely serves to conceal the unsightly weld joints. Theseaforementioned pedestal supports are relatively costly to construct inview of the labor or parts required.

08.] ECTS Accordingly, it is a primary object of this invention toprovide a novel pedestal support for furniture which will havesufficient strength and yet may be easily and economically manufacturedin superior contrast to those of the prior art noted above. Includedherein is such a furniture support which has fewer parts and may bemanufactured to possess a pleasing appearance.

A further object of this invention is to provide such a furnituresupport which may be fabricated in various geometrical designs to suitvarious types of furniture or furniture designs.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide such afurniture support which will offer effective furniture support and willbe durable over long periods of repeated and even rugged use.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION The above objects are achieved in a furniturepedestal support which, in one embodiment, is comprised of two supportmembers attached to opposite sides of a third member, intermediate theends thereof, to form a base in the form of'cross members. A post havinglongitudinal slots in one hollow end thereof, is placed over the crossmembers with the slots respectively receiving the cross members andconcealing the welds therebe tween. The post is then securely fixed tothe cross members, such as by welding in the interior of the post so asto fill the voids therein between the post and the cross members.

DRAWINGS the table being illustrated in phantom lines;

FIG. 2 is a fragmental cross-sectional view taken along lines 2.'2ofFIG. 1 showing the members of the support in subassembled, partlyattached condition;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 but with the support members in fullyattached condition; and

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the support membersillustrating assembly thereof.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to the drawings in detail, there is shownin FIG. 1 for illustrative purposes only, a table generally designated Tincorporating a support pedestal desigthereof to form a crossconfiguration. In the specific embodiment shown, the support members 1,2 and 3 are shown as elongated rectangular members having a rectangularcross section. It will be readily apparent that the support members maybe made from any suitable material such as steel, aluminum or anysuitable alloy. Also, other geometrical shapes may be employed informing the support members 1, 2 and 3. Furthermore, although thesecondary support members '1 and 2 are attached at right angles to themain support member 3, other angular relationships'may be employed, suchas wherein the support members 1 and 2 extend obliquely relative to themain support member 3. Since, in the shown embodiment, the supportmembers 1, 2 and 3 have a rectangular shape, they are attached with eachother so that the bottom surfaces in the lower support members all liein the same plane. Similarly, with respect to the upper support memberswhich are employed to secure the table top T, the upper surfaces ofthesupport members all lie in the same plane to provide flush engagementwith the underside of the table top. In the preferred embodiment, thesupport members l, 2 and 3 are formed from a suitable material such assteelor aluminum, and they are attached to each other by means of weldsdesignated 4 in FIG. 2.

After the support members 1, 2 and 3 are secured to each other in theaforementioned manner, an upright or post, shown in the form of a hollowtube, is. secured to the support members at right angles to the plane ofthe support members. This'is accomplished through the means of aplurality of elongated slots 6 formed in the ends of the post 5 toreceive the base support members 1, 2 and 3, as shown in phantom linesin F IG; 4. The extent of the slots 6 corresponds to the depth of thesupport members 1, 2 and 3. Also, in view of the number and arrangementof support members, there are four equiangularly spaced slots providedin the ends of the post 5, as shown in FIG. 4. It will be apparent thatonce the post 5 is placed over the support members with the latterreceived in the slots 6, the welds 4 used to join the support members 1and 2 to the main support member 3, will be enclosed in the post 5 to beconcealed from view.

In order to complete the joint, the support members 1, 2 and 3 are fixedto the post 5 preferably by welds 7 placed within the end of the post 5to completely fill the voids therein between the support members and thepost, as shown in FIG. 3.

It will thus be seen that the present invention avoids the necessity ofsanding and polishing welds to enhance the appearance of the pedestal asis necessary with methods of the prior art. At the same time, thepresent invention avoids the necessity of applying a secondary tubularmember to cover the welds. Furthermore, while providing the aforenotedadvantages, the resulting pedestal of the present invention possessessufficient strength and rigidity to provide effective support forfurniture. Finally, it is noted that the aforementioned advantages areachieved with a minimum number of parts and labor and in accordance witha method which may be adapted to mass production with standard pieces ofstock.

We claim:

1. A method of fabricating a support for an item of furniture such as achair, table or the like comprising the steps of:

Rigidly attaching first and second support members to opposite sides ofa third support member in transverse relation thereto;

Placing a post having a hollow lower end with slots extendinglongitudinally therein, over said first, second and third supportmembers with said support members received in said slots respectivelyand the post concealing the connection between the cross members andRigidly attaching said first, second and third support members to saidpost at said end thereof. 2. The method defined in claim 1 wherein thepost is attached to said cross members by an agent located within saidend of said post to be concealed from view.

3. The method defined in claim 1 wherein said first and second supportmembers are attached to said third support member by a plurality ofwelds, and said first, second and third support members are attached tosaid post by a plurality of welds located in said lower end of the post.

4. The method defined in claim 3 wherein said welds completely fill thevoid between said first, second and third support members and said postin said lower end thereof.

5. A pedestal support for an item of furniture such as a chair, table orthe like comprising:

a first base support member,

second and third base support members rigidly fixed to said first basesupport member and projecting outwardly from opposite sides thereofrespectively,

an upright member having a hollow lower end with at least four slotsextending longitudinally therein 1 from said end, said upright memberreceived on said first, second and third base support members with saidslots'respectively receiving said first, second and third base supportmembers, and

concealed means in said lower end of said upright rigidly securing saidfirst, second and third base support members thereto.

6. The pedestal support defined in claim 5 wherein said means is aplurality of welds.

7. The pedestal support defined in claim 5 wherein said upright memberis a tubular member.

8. The pedestal support defined in claim 6 wherein said first, secondand third support members are fixed to each other by welds concealed insaid upright.

9. A method of fabricating a support for an item of furniture such as achair, table or the like comprising the steps of:

rigidly attaching a support member to one side of a second supportmember in transverse relationship thereto;

placing a post having a hollow lower end with slots extendinglongitudinally therein over said first and second support members withthe support members received in said slots respectively and the postconcealing the connection between the support members; and

bonding said first and second support members to said post at the lowerend thereof, said bond wholly confined within said lower end.

10. A method defined in claim 9 wherein the post is attached tosaidfirst and second support members by welds located within said lower endof said post to be concealed from view.

11. A pedestal support for an item of furniture such as a chair, tableor the like comprising;

a first base support member,

a second base support member rigidly fixed to one side of said firstbase support member and projecting outwardly therefrom in transverserelationship thereto,

an upright vertical support member having a hollow lower end with aplurality of slots extending longitudinally therein from said lower endthereof, said vertical support member received on said first and secondbase support members with said slots respectively receiving said firstand second base support members, and

concealed means confined to said lower end of said vertical supportmember bonding said first and second support members directly to saidvertical support member at the lower end of said vertical support memberand wholly confined within said lower end.

12. The pedestal support defined in claim 11 wherein said means arewelds.

13. The pedestal support as defined in claim 12 wherein said weldscompletely fill the lower end of said vertical support member.

1. A method of fabricating a support for an item of furniture such as achair, table or the like comprising the steps of: Rigidly attachingfirst and second support members to opposite sides of a third supportmember in transverse relation thereto; Placing a post having a hollowlower end with slots extending longitudinally therein, over said first,second and third support members with said support members received insaid slots respectively and the post concealing the connection betweenthe cross members and Rigidly attaching said first, second and thirdsupport members to said post at said end thereof.
 2. The method definedin claim 1 wherein the post is attached to said cross members by anagent located within said end of said post to be concealed from view. 3.The method defined in claim 1 wherein said first and second supportmembers are attached to said third support member by a plurality ofwelds, and said first, second and third support members are attached tosaid post by a plurality of welds located in said lower end of the post.4. The method defined in claim 3 wherein said welds completely fill thevoid between said first, second and third support members and said postin said lower end thereof.
 5. A pedestal support for an item offurniture such as a chair, table or the like comprising: a first basesupport member, second and third base support members rigidly fixed tosaid first base support member and projecting outwardly from oppositesides thereof respectively, an upright member having a hollow lower endwith at least four slots extending longitudinally therein from said end,said upright member received on said first, second and third basesupport members with said slots respectively receiving said first,second and third base support members, and concealed means in said lowerend of said upright rigidly securing said first, second and third basesupport members thereto.
 6. The pedestal support defined in claim 5wherein said means is a plurality of welds.
 7. The pedestal supportdefined in claim 5 wherein said upright member is a tubular member. 8.The pedestal support defined in claim 6 wherein said first, second andthird support members are fixed to each other by welds concealed in saidupright.
 9. A method of fabricating a support for an item of furnituresuch as a chair, table or the like comprising the steps of: rigidlyattaching a support member to one side of a second support member intransverse relationship thereto; placing a post having a hollow lowerend with slots extending longitudinally therein over said first andsecond support members with the support members received in said slotsrespectively and the post concealing the connection between the supportmembers; and bonding said first and second support members to said postat the lower end thereof, said bond wholly confined within said lowerend.
 10. A method defined in claim 9 wherein the post is attached tosaid first and second support members by welds located within said lowerend of said post to be concealed from view.
 11. A pedestal support foran item of furniture such as a chair, table or the like comprising; afirst base support member, a second base support member rigidly fixed toone side of said first base support member and projecting outwardlytherefrom in transverse relationship thereto, an upright verticalsupport member having a hollow lower end with a plurality of slotsextending longitudinally therein from said lower end thereof, saidvertical support member received on said first and second base supportmembers with said slots respectively receiving said first and secondbase support members, and concealed means confined to said lower end ofsaid vertical support member bonding said first and second supportmEmbers directly to said vertical support member at the lower end ofsaid vertical support member and wholly confined within said lower end.12. The pedestal support defined in claim 11 wherein said means arewelds.
 13. The pedestal support as defined in claim 12 wherein saidwelds completely fill the lower end of said vertical support member.